Greek Life Essay

Hellenic Life Since the Kappa Alpha smart set was founded in 1825 at Union College, alone but three United States Presidents lease been members of a sectionalisationicipation. The Greek strategy outright contains nine million members across 123 chapters of fraternities and sororities. ball club million people have taken advantage of the opportunity to better themselves and their universities through with(predicate) a club or sorority. save when constantly a Greek organization is have in the media, it is usually for reasons of an out of check off parcely or hazing allegations.The media ignores the millions of hours dedicated to conjunction service, as well as the millions of dollars embossed for charity annually. Hazing makes headlines, philanthropy does non. The Greek system is frequently criticized for instances of members breaking the non-hazing policy of all chapter across the country, and is regularly condemned for it. Hazing is an mislabeled founder of man y organizations, including the military, sports teams, marching bands, fraternities and sororities. Hazing a absorb is illegal in all of these organizations and is specifically turn to in the handbook of many Greek organizations.For some, hazing is seen as a rite of passage, and is evaluate when pledging a participation. Regardless(prenominal), this practice is actually less popular than the media makes it seem. I personally am pledging a confederation here at Salem State University, and have never been told or forced to do something I did not want to do. Hazing does pass away though, and it deplorably it hurts the image of the Greek system as a whole. Dartmouth College, the school where the famed frat film Animal House is set, has been infamous for their brutal hazing practices.In an article written by an ex-fraternity member at Dartmouth, Andrew Lohse recalls the horrible acts he had to perform in order to gain acceptance into one of the 17 chapters. I was a member of a fra ternity that asked bargains, in order to become a br opposite, to swim in a kiddie pocket billiards of vomit, urine, fecal matter, semen and rotten aliment products eat omelets made of vomit sound cups of vinegar, which in one case caused a pledge to vomit blood draw beer poured low-spirited fellow pledges ass cracks mong other abuses. This type of behavior does indeed happen at some chapters. Those chapters however, atomic number 18 readily discoered, investigated, and when evidence of hazing is clear, the national chapter of that fraternity shuts galvanic pile the chapter at the college. The members involved can withal be tried in court, and show jail time and heavy fines. The target of pledgeship is not to humiliate and demean future members it is to build a strong oblige with ones pledge brothers and fraternity brothers.As told to me by a brother when I asked if we were ever going to be hit, he answered, no, this fraternity is made up of my friends and I dont kno w approximately you, but I dont hit my friends. Throughout pledgeship we are told to hear around at for each one other and realize that the gentleman in our fraternity are not more everywhere college buddies, they are going to be standing beside us at our wedding and looking over us at our funeral. As my pledgeship winds down and my initiation approaches, I can honestly say that I am such(prenominal) different than I was a a couple of(prenominal) months ago.My leading ability has increased immensely I was elected the president of my pledge class and have taken on more responsibility than I ever thought myself capable of. I celebrate myself not afraid to take on a challenge, or step up as a leader in my classes and activities. A fraternity does not just benefit an individual on a personal level, in the professional piece it is a huge advantage over competition for a job. Right now, 85% of Fortune 500 executives were a part of Greek life. The vast network of alumni branche d across the gentleman opens up legion(predicate) possibilities for employment.The Greek community takes care of each other, and when an employer sees that a potential employee was Greek in college, they automatically have an advantage. If the employee was in the uniform chapter as the employer, that advantage becomes even bigger. universe in a fraternity opens up doors for thousands of college graduates every year. Warren Buffett, named one of the nigh influential people in the world by Time magazine, was a part of my fraternity, Alpha Sigma Phi. Buffett has also been on the arguing for the richest man in the world many times.Many successful businessmen, politicians, and community leaders since 1825 are the products of Greek life on their college campuses. The popular frequently condemns the Greek system when members learn to break the law, however the system is seldom commended when the same members raise thousands of dollars for charity. Personal leadership and responsib ility is a skill that not many have, and cannot be taught. A fraternity or sorority does teach this and more, and develops wide-eyed fledgling on a college campus into successful adults in a very short aggregate of time.The Greek system has been doing this since 1825, and will sojourn to mold model citizens for the world. Works Cited Confessions of an ivy League Frat Boy internal Dartmouths Hazing Abuses. Rollingstone. com. N. p. , n. d. Web. 10 Apr. 2013. <http//www. rollingstone. com/culture/news/confessions-of-an-ivy-league-frat-boy-inside-dartmouths-hazing-abuses-20120328>. Examining the Benefits of Greek Life USA TODAY College. Examining the Benefits of Greek Life USA TODAY College. N. p. , n. d. Web. 10 Apr. 2013. <http//www. usatodayeducate. om/staging/index. php/campuslife/examining-the-benefits-of-greek-life>. The Fraternity adviser. The Fraternity Advisor RSS. N. p. , n. d. Web. 10 Apr. 2013. <http//thefraternityadvisor. com/greek-life-statistics/>. H azing Information. Hazing Prevention. N. p. , n. d. Web. 10 Apr. 2013. <http//www. hazingprevention. org/hazing-information. html>. seeking an End to Hazing Deaths. CBSNews. CBS Interactive, 05 Feb. 2012. Web. 10 Apr. 2013. <http//www. cbsnews. com/8301-3445_162-57371657/seeking-an-end-to-hazing-deaths/>.